What happened to Coeur'd'Alene? (live, vs, store)

[Riley.]

Long long ago Hubs and I wandered around the Couer D'alene area. Gorgeous place but too many cops from LA were moving there and we decided we didn't want to be around them. LOL. And we were from LA. That's too bad.

What about Lake Pend Orielle? Same?

[apple92680]

It's not liberals or "blue people" who've been moving to Coeur d'Alene and Kootenai County.

[NW Crow]

CDA gets folks from CA, Seattle WA and many other places. Conservative and liberal and moderates, self identified and / or as perceived by others (not always the same).

More Californians and conservatives as the article shows, but it also shows the migration is somewhat mixed.

People don't meet and learn about every newcomer. Who you recognize as a newcomer (actually meeting or not) can be affected by your neighborhood, community activities and what you focus on.

A pretty large share of people are not registered with a party or registered to vote all.

It is also true that politically conservative or liberal does not always line up exactly with the social style of a person or the impression of it by others.

One other thing that might happen in long run could be kids and grandkids not keeping their parents' politics. Whether they stay in Idaho or just visit.

[volosong]

Upon retirement in 2017, I moved to the CdA area. One of the reasons for retiring here is how courteous people are. After only being here for two and a half years, the voters elected me to the city council. So much for the anti-California hate! (However, I was roundly defeated for re-election in this past election by the candidate who was endorsed by the extremist right-wingers. (The city council being a non-partisan office, I wasn't going to play their political games.))

I have definitely seen a shift in attitudes since I moved here, and probably wouldn't move here today, knowing what it has become. There are still bright lights. Just last night I chatted with a woman in the aisles of Fred Meyer's for about fifteen minutes about all sorts of topics. There are still good people here. I am fortunate to live in a city outside of the CdA/PF/Hayden core, but close enough to go into "the circus" when I need to for shopping or medical care.

[heavymind]

Originally Posted by cats_overlander

I had to drive an RV through CDA not too long ago... it seemed like California.

Coeur d'LA?

[idahocougar]

Originally Posted by cats_overlander

Went to Sandpoint, which used to be a lovely quiet peaceful small town: now it's "California on Pend'O'Reille". Endless traffic where used to be no cars, honking, it used to be pleasant to walk around the down town now it's crowded with cars, went to stores they seemed like a copy of SF Bay Area. Got out of town pronto, will never be back.

There are about 10 times more people in summer than in winter. Or it seems so. The main street is too narrow, especially with the diagonal parking, but I guess otherwise there'd be no place to park. Fortunately, Lake Pend Oreille is big enough to accommodate a lot of boaters and not feel too crowded. It's three times bigger than Lake Coeur d'Alene.

[movedintime]

You might enjoy Baker City, Oregon. It is similar to what CDA was 35 years ago, but not for long, it to has been discovered, with cute downtown shops opening and surrounded by beautiful mountains.

[NW Crow]

Baker City can be a good suggestion for some. But it is very different from CDA. Present day Baker City is at a little over 10k. CDA was at 10k almost 85 years ago. 35 years ago CDA started growing by 500 per year instead just 200 and then it became 1,000 per year. Baker City is barely above where it was in 1960 after a long period of slight decline and treading water. Population growth in Baker City from 2022 to 2023? +31. It might grow into hundreds per year but not yet. Has been discovered more for layovers and vacations so far.


If getting away from crowds is a top priority, there are options. Many people want quiet AND jobs, convenient services & entertainment. Strike your own balance.

[Mister Torgue]

Low population, affordable, and scenic. Pick 1. Getting all of these in one basket is nearly impossible in todays environment. The only reversal of population growth I can see is people leaving these areas rust moved to and heading back where they escaped from. I doubt that happens, ever.

[volosong]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

Baker City can be a good suggestion for some. But it is very different from CDA. Present day Baker City is at a little over 10k...

I was always intrigued by La Grande, just up the freeway from Baker City. If it weren't in Oregon, I would have given it a closer inspection when researching my retirement home.